Tulu Mela 2004 in Washington, D C
May 28 30, 2004
Tulu Mela 2004, a conference of Kannada and Tulu speaking Brahmins of South
Kanara & Udipi district origin in India, was held at Washington, D C over the Memorial Day weekend. The event was attended
by over two hundred people from India, UK and eighteen states in the US. The Mela was attended by a good number of young professionals
making the event a grand success.
During the welcome address, Mr. S. V. Acharya mentioned that the objective
of the meet was for providing an opportunity for persons hailing from that region to meet and foster closer ties. The event
started on May 28th with Getting to know you dinner party, with introduction of all the participants. Next day,
the group attended a picnic during the day and cultural program in the evening. Highlight of the cultural event was Yakshagana
Narakasura Vadhe, a music drama of historic epic unique to South Kanara performed by metro Washington DC talent group Yaksha
Vrinda. In appreciation, Mrs. Vijaya Rao, a two time organizer of Tulu Mela in Chicago in 1999 and 2002 awarded token gifts
to Yakshagana artists. Additionally, there was classical Bharatha Natyam dance by accomplished dancer Mrs. Bhramari Shivaprakash
from New Jersey and movie songs by professional singer Mrs. Subhashini Kunjur from UK, who is referred to as Lata Mageshkar
of Manchester, besides songs, dance and skit by adult and children participants. A certificate of appreciation was also awarded
to all cultural program participants for their enthusiastic participation by Dr. Dasan Potti, a pioneer member of the community
who was instrumental in establishing two pharmaceutical companies in the U S.
On May 30th, the last day of the Mela, the group went for a cruise
in Baltimore during the day and attended a formal banquet in the night. During the concluding session, Mr. S. V. Acharya,
on behalf of the organizing committee thanked the participants for their strong support in making the event a great success.
Dr. Balakrishna Rao, a retired professor from Pennsylvania, awarded a plaque to Mrs. Nirmala Acharya for her outstanding service
in organizing this event. For additional information or to obtain a DVD
copy of the event, please contact Mrs. Nirmala V. Acharya at (301) 251-0378.
